1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic amusement device and more particularly to an electronic amusement device such as a slot machine having the ability to propagate an indication of performance adjustment.
2. Description of the Related Art
In 1997, electronic amusement devices (including slot machines, video poker machines and the like, hereinafter referred to as xe2x80x9cslot machinesxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cmachinesxe2x80x9d) installed in U.S. casinos generated greater than ten billion dollars of revenue. With individual machines typically earning between $50 and $150 per day, slot machines can account for well over 50% of a U.S. casino""s overall profits. The net profit from slot machine play for a casino generally exceeds the profit from all other casino gaming activities.
The comparatively high profitability of slot machines may be attributed to many factors, such as the low operating cost of slot machines compared to table games, the ability of slot machines to conduct games at a faster play rate compared to table games, the appeal of slot machines to players of every skill level, and the large potential payout offered by slot machines in exchange for a comparatively small wager.
To capitalize on the comparatively high profitability of slot machines, many casinos provide thousands of machines for players to use. Consequently, players are often faced with an overwhelming variety of slot machines, producing a cacophony of sights and sounds, which makes selecting a slot machine confusing.
When faced with a wide variety of slot machines, many players try to determine which machine or which area within the casino is xe2x80x9cluckyxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9chotxe2x80x9d. A lucky or hot machine is a machine that a player believes will payout more frequently or in larger amounts compared to other slot machines. Players often consider a machine lucky or hot if it has recently awarded a large jackpot, provides frequent payouts, or has not paid off recently and is therefore xe2x80x9cduexe2x80x9d to payout. Unfortunately, players presently have no way to readily identify such machines. Some prior art slot machines display a pay-back percentage, but this represents long-term results, not whether a machine could be deemed to be lucky or hot at a particular moment.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,127,651 describes a slot machine invented by Okada. The disclosed slot machine accumulates values bet on games during an insurance period. When the accumulated value reaches a predetermined amount, a predetermined value of insurance is paid out, and the insurance period is terminated. The disclosed slot machine displays the value having been wagered during the insurance period, allowing the player to consider or expect the payment of insurance when playing games, in addition to the winning of prizes. The Okada device has significant short comings. Although the Okada device displays the number of coins bet during an insurance period, it fails to provide a player with an indication of whether the machine could b considered lucky or hot.
It is not only difficult for slot machine players to determine whether a machine is lucky or hot, but slot machine players also have few ways to capitalize on the good fortune of those around them. Although one slot machine may be considered lucky or hot, the play of surrounding slot machines remains unaffected.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,700 to Celona, entitled xe2x80x9cProportional Payout Method for Progressively Linked Gaming Machinesxe2x80x9d describes a device that is intended to enable slot machine players to capitalize on the good fortune of those around them. The device proportionally pays out a progressive jackpot win to all of the players at a group of linked slot machines contributing to the progressive jackpot when a player playing at one of these linked slot machines hits the progressive jackpot winning combination.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,580,309 to Piechowiak et al., entitled xe2x80x9cLinked Gaming Machines Having a Common Feature Controllerxe2x80x9d, describes a system of linked slot machines. A central controller polls each linked machine for its results. After a certain criterion is met by one of the machines, a feature is enabled for all of the linked machines. The feature is disabled after a linked machine generates a winning game result based on the feature.
The Celona and Piechowiak systems enable players to benefit from the good fortune of others only in specific and limited ways. Accordingly, there is a need to provide a method and apparatus that propagates incremental adjustments in performance from a source gaming device to surrounding recipient gaming devices. It would further be advantageous to provide a method and apparatus that enables slot machine players to easily distinguish between slot machines having a variety of performance levels.
An object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus enabling slot machine players to easily determine whether a slot machine is desirable. A further object of the present invention is to provide a slot machine that adjusts its performance based on a level determined, in part, based upon the performance of at least one other slot machine. An advantage of the present invention for a casino operator is that it attracts the attention of potential slot machine players. Another advantage of the present invention for a casino operator is that it encourages prolonged slot machine play by players using the device.
In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, an electronic amusement device and method is disclosed for propagating an indication of adjusted performance to at least one other slot machine. The method includes the steps of receiving an initiation signal to initiate a game play and conducting the game play in response to the initiation signal. The method also includes the step of determining whether a propagation criterion has been achieved. If the propagation criterion has been achieved, a propagation signal is output to at least one other slot machine. The propagation signal represents an instruction to adjust performance. The disclosed slot machine implements the method of the present invention.
In accordance with a second aspect of the present invention, a slot server and method is disclosed for communicating an indication of adjusted performance between at least two slot machines. The method includes the step of receiving game data from a source slot machine. The game data includes a source machine identifier corresponding to the source slot machine. The method also includes the step of determining whether a propagation criterion has been achieved by the source slot machine. If the propagation criterion has been achieved, at least one recipient machine identifier is determined. Each of the recipient machine identifiers corresponds to a recipient slot machine. The method further includes the step of transmitting a propagation signal to each recipient slot machine corresponding to the recipient machine identifiers.
In accordance with a third aspect of the present invention, an electronic amusement device and method is disclosed for processing an indication of adjusted performance. The method includes the step of storing a performance level. The method also includes receiving a propagation signal. The propagation signal represents an indication of adjusted performance. The method further includes the step of adjusting the performance level. Preferably, a visual representation of the performance level is output to alert players of the performance adjustment and to attract them to the gaming device with the increased performance level.